X-Men The New Batch: Reemergence
by Lizzo206
Summary: "No more mutants." These three words changed the world. With so many of their friends gone, the few remaining mutants came together to create a home for themselves amongst the multitude of homo sapiens. They were forced to face the loss and deaths of friends and loved ones, a schism and a regenesis. Now, after the Lights, new mutants have begun to surface, a Reemergence is at hand.
1. Reemergence

**X-Men**

**The New Batch**

**Reemergence**

**Toronto, Ontario, Canada**

The sun that streamed in through the window made his skin itch. He slumped onto the floor and grabbed a remote off the table in front of him, aimed it at the large window and hit a button. Blinds came down and cut off the light.

"Much better," he thought, "Still, maybe I should see a doctor and find out what's wrong with me like Katie suggested."

Dorian Chambers sprawled on the soft carpet in front of the couch he had previously been lounging in. He ran a hand through his disheveled black hair then pushed himself up onto his knees. The penthouse in which he lived was now bathed in a dull gloom that brought a smile to his face.

It had been several weeks since he had started to notice that direct light was bothering him. A day or two after that he'd realized that it was actually sunlight that made him feel uncomfortable. Since then, any contact with sunlight had made him feel itchy and nauseous, and it had only been getting worse.

His friend Katie, the only person his age he'd ever had any real contact with, had even sided with him against his father when he had asked to stay behind at home instead of accompanying him on his business trip to New York.

"Katie..."

Dorian stretched and got to his feet. He grabbed the remote and began to move around the penthouse hitting the button again and again for each room. Once the blinds in a room were closed he dusted and vacuumed. Cleaning the penthouse in place of the cleaning staff had been a part of the agreement between him and his father that allowed him to stay home.

Finally reaching the bathroom, Dorian gazed into the mirror and again ran his hand through his hair. His once wavy hair had become flat and messy since the sun had begun affecting him in such an odd way.

"Argghh, damnit!," Dorian hit the button on the remote and closed the blinds in the bathroom. "Of course I forget that one," he grumbled as he pulled his hand away from the diminishing light.

Turning his attention back to the mirror he leaned in for a closer inspection. His eyes were hazy and, to his alarm, he noticed a few grey hairs in his bangs.

"And to top it off, I'm going grey at fourteen. Fantastic."

Noticing his watch in his reflection from the mirror, Dorian checked the time and instantly forgot about his premature grey hair. His father was due back from his trip in less than twenty minutes, and as another of the conditions of not going with him, Dorian was to meet him in the lobby of the building when he arrived back.

Running into his room Dorian ripped off his shirt, grabbed the freshly pressed one that had he had ironed himself two days earlier, and forced his arms into the sleeves. Stuffing the bottom of the shirt into his pants and pulling a belt on he dashed from room to room again to open all the blinds he had closed while he was cleaning.

Checking his watch again he carefully tossed the remote onto a couch and made for the door of the penthouse.

"Arghgh!," a yelp of pain escaped Dorian as he passed by a window on the way to the door. Grabbing the side of his face the light had touched did nothing to help as his hand was now in the light. Dorian fell forward onto the floor as the door opened.

Scrambling to get away from the window Dorian looked up in shock as a girl with long blonde hair rushed to his side. With a quick glance at him and then at the window, the girl moved to position herself between his crumpled form and the cause of his pain.

"Dorian! Are you okay?," her look of worry made him feel a bit better, though his hand and face still ached.

"Yeah, I think so. But, Katie, my dad will be in the lobby any minute, I have to get down there to meet him."

"Hrrrm," Katie clearly was not thrilled at the idea of allowing him to go, but she knew Dorian and his father too well to argue, "Fine. Here, take my hand and let's get you up."

Dorian grasped the hand she offered and pulled himself up.

"Are you sure you're okay?," questioned Katie, "I can go down and tell your dad you're not feeling well?"

"No, I said I'd meet him."

Katie turned and exited the penthouse with Dorian on her heels. He closed the door to the penthouse and they both started down the hallway towards the elevator. There were no windows in this hall, much to Dorian's appreciation. When the light had touched his face and then his hand it felt like he had been burned.

His expression must have given away his thoughts as Katie stepped closer to him and put her arm around him.

"Dorian. You didn't go to see anyone about this did you?," her question cut through him almost as sharply as the sunlight had.

"No. I had planned on it, but I -"

"What am I going to do with you?"

Katie Lancaster had been Dorian's one and only friend for the better part of his life. Usually quite airy and easy-going, when she did get mad she was like a force of nature unto herself. It had been Katie who had talked his father into letting him stay home during his father's business trip. His father, a force to be reckoned with himself, had quickly buckled under the pressure of her explanations of how sick Dorian may actually be, and that he may get worse if forced to travel.

Dorian glanced at his friend as she ushered him down the hallway towards the elevator. Her blonde hair was swept back in its usual wind-blown style as if she had been moving very fast or had been struck with a gale force wind. Her cerulean eyes were aflame, her nose scrunched and her lips curled into a scowl of derision at having found him in such a state. He smiled in spite of himself.

They got onto the elevator and Katie pressed the button labled '_Lobby_.' Dorian settled himself against the back wall and she turned to face him.

"What are you smiling about?," she threw at him. He realized only too late that he still had a grin on his face.

"I don't know. Feeling better I guess. Thanks for helping me back there," Dorian responded and then rebounded on her "but, what are you doing here in the first place?"

Katie's anger subsided instantly, changing into obvious embarassment, evidenced by her pale cheeks filling with colour.

"I just thought I'd come check on you. I forgot your dad was scheduled to return today." Katie looked everywhere in the elevator, everywhere except at Dorian, before continuing. "That's beside the point! Why haven't you gone to see anyone?! I told you to do that weeks ago, and now your dad's coming back and you still haven't done it. It looks like you're just getting worse and then I come to see you and I find you collapsed on the floor and all I can think is -"

Dorian noticed her eyes become watery and then the fire he had seen earlier sprung back into life. He knew what that meant, but was too slow on the uptake. Katie's fist hit him on his right shoulder, hard.

"If you thought the sunlight hurt you, remember what I can do to you."

Since they had been eight years old they had been like this. They had always looked out for one another, though it was usually her standing up for him, even if it meant it was against him in better judgement. As they had grown older her defence had usually come with a punch to the arm, though he had done his fair share of returning the favour. Now they were both set to go to high school and as much as things had stayed the same, Dorian had started to notice that things were changing. Katie had become somewhat more protective, more impulsive in her visits. He didn't mind. She was his best friend and nothing could change that.

Katie had calmed down by the time the elevator reached the lobby and Dorian followed her out of the small compartment. The lobby was lined with white marble walls and counters at the front entrance, while the floors were a mix of gold and green checkered marble. Dorian noticed that a limo sat idle outside and watched as a doorman moved toward it. Surpassing Katie in stride, Dorian made his way across the lobby and, forgetting the last several minutes, walked out the doors and straight towards the limo.

A tall brown-haired man stepped out of the limo as the doorman held the vehicle's door open for him. Sandford Chambers was a man of average height and build with a constant relaxed expression and a wandering eye. However, his eyes were fixed on the scene in front of him and were held wide with disbelief and horror.

Dorian had exited the building intent on greeting his father as he had promised, and had inadvertantly stepped out into direct sunlight. The pain that wracked him made it feel like he was on fire. He was on his knees within seconds and then onto his side, writhing on the sidewalk.

Katie ran from the building, yelling Dorian's name. Noticing his father standing there she called out to him.

"Mr. Chambers! Help me get him inside! You -," she demanded of the doorman who, like Dorian's father, merely stood there in awe, "Pick him up and-"

Katie was cut off by her own shock at what lay in front of her and the two men. Dorian's hair had turned slate grey, his skin had become a deeper black than obsidian and when he writhed his eyes opened to reveal that they too, had become black, with vivid yellow irises.

"Dorian!" Shouted Mr. Chambers and Katie in unison as black tendrils spread out from all around him as he flailed on the ground. Katie attempted to place her hand on him to help him in some way, but quickly drew back as the darkness that seemed to be leaking from him reached toward the shadow provided by the awning of the building. Dorian, without even attempting it, seemed to be being drawn toward the shadow and pulled closer to it by the tendrils that streamed out from him.

"Dorian?!"

**Las Vegas, Nevada**

It wasn't just another day to make people laugh or scream, it was picture day.

Laticia De Soto smiled as she rolled over in her bed thinking about the scheme she'd been planning for weeks. Pulling faces during the pictures was childish, she mused, especially since she had done just that for the last few years. Her plan this year was going to be epic, she had even coerced several of her classmates into joining in just to make things even better.

Jarret was on duty to bring and release his pet tarantula Mikey, Sarah was going to wear the skirt she had altered to be able to tear away. The twins, Yvette and Harold, were going to sneak in Halloween masks and Paul was set to flip-off the teacher.

Her friends had some creativity to them thought Laticia as she snuggled her pillow and chuckled softly to herself. Sadly they would all be put to shame when her masterpiece was unveiled. Laticia went through her plan again for what was probably the hundrenth time.

The night before, unbeknownest to her parents, she had dyed her hair in streaks of various colours. To be able to leave the house and attend school she had purchased a wig that matched her natural hair colour perfectly. She opened her eyes and spied the wig sitting on her dresser on the opposite side of her room and began to chuckle again. Beside the wig sat her school bag, filled with mascara, dark eyeliner and a pair of upside-down cross earrings. To accompany the makeup and earrings, Laticia had also delved into her birthday money and bought a low-cut white top, a push-up bra and a pair of stockings from the new clothing store '_Unholy Outfitters_.'

A loud buzz informed her that it was time to begin her day of mayhem. Laticia bounded out of her bed, snagged her bag and wig off her dresser and dashed into the adjoining bathroom. Her reflection in the mirror made her drop her belongings. She stared at the mirror and gaped at what looked back at her.

Her tan skin had changed to resemble light grey stone and her dark brown eyes had become pure white. Her newly dyed hair had turned into a rainbow of spikey crystals running from her brow, along the crown of her head and ended, dangling just above her shoulders.

Laticia realized her mouth was hanging open so she closed it. She tentatively raised her hand and brushed several of the crystal strands that had, the night before, been her hair, and she heard a slight tinkling sound as they hit one another.

A large smirk spread across her face as the contents of her school bag were forgotton. She moved back from the mirror to fit more of herself in its frame and gave herself a once-over.

"Everyone is going to freak." Laticia declared with a chuckle. "Happy picture day."

**London, England**

Two months had elapsed since Kafele had been home. Visiting Egypt with his mother on her business trips was always exciting, but having been gone so long, he was looking forward to seeing his step-brother and getting ready for school.

He enjoyed his visits to his home country, though he had felt like a tourist from time to time. Kafele took pride in his nationality, especially its history. The pyramids, temples and other architecture of the ancients had always fascinated him. The current political predicament on the other hand, was not as interesting, though it had forced his mother's most recent trip to become extended. Kafele had refocused his annoyance at this towards spending more time revisiting the museums and landmarks he had been to countless times before.

Though he had been born to the heat, the sun and sand of Egypt, Kafele always liked returning to England's grey skies and rolling green hills. After spending so much time away he was thrilled to be back.

The flight had been pleasant, except for a bit of turbulence from time to time, but that was to be expected of such a long flight. Kafele sat quietly as the plane taxied closer to the main building. He could just make out a foreign affairs vehicle idling on the strip, waiting for his mother. When the plane had come to a stop Kafele remained in his seat, always the respectable son of the ambassador, as several other delegates disembarked.

Finally able to move, Kafele moved quickly towards the open door. The breeze that rifled through his hair when he stepped dow onto the tarmac was cool and refreshing. He had missed this. Turning, he waited for his mother to come down the short flight of steps and move towards the car before making his way over to it as well.

"Did you have a good flight Ms. Burrage?," asked the driver as he helped Kafele's mother into the vehicle as another man loaded the luggage into the trunk.

"It was fine. Thank you."

His mother was always serious when they went away. She knew when to put on her business face, Kafele knew, but she also knew when to take it back off.

After settling into the back of the car she turned to him and the smile he had not seen in almost two months flashed onto her face. The ambassador was gone and his mother had returned.

"It's good to be back, isn't it?," her smile spread across her face, making her dark brown eyes light up.

"It is," Kafele acknowledged, "It's a shame that Greg and Nathan couldn't come to pick us up though."

"Well, you know how the office is - 'your job isn't over 'til blah blah blah...," his mother stuck out her tongue and made a face that made him chuckle.

"Speaking of them, Greg and I have dinner plans tonight, so you and Nathan will have the house to yourselves."

His mother's voice echoed in his head. What happened next he couldn't quite remember, except that there was a sound of a sudden intake of air and then a blinding white light.

Whatever was under him was cool and hard, like metal. His head swam and his jaw ached. Opening his eyes he realized that he was covered with a white sheet. He swung his feet to the side and ripped away the sheet.

It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark before he realized where he was. There was one other metallic table beside the one he had been on. He forced himself not to think about what was under the sheet on that table.

Kafele fumbled towards a wall and found a light switch. The shock of where he was made his heart stop.

"A morgue!," he whispered, grabbing his chest, "I'm in a morgue, and over there is a..."

He inhaled and exhaled several times, willing his body to compose itself. It was easier than he thought it would be. Kafele opened his eyes and blinked.

"If I'm in a morgue than that light must have been...," his throughts trailed off, "then why am I still - oh my."

Kafele held up his hands, then looked down at his bare chest and legs. Calmly he moved over to the table he had awoken on and looked at his reflection in the metal surface. His skin was a dim grey-ish green and in places looked as if it were about to peel off. His always neat hair now featured several spikey tufts and he had dark bags under his eyes. He also noticed that he was quite a bit slimmer than he remembered being.

"So am I dead?," Kafele wondered aloud, "Or am I some kind of zombie, or -"

An idea hit him suddenly that made him forget his previous line of thought. He walked towards the door and grabbed a spare labcoat that was hanging from a post on the wall. Pulling his arms into the sleeves and closing the coat to hide his nakedness, Kafele looked back one last time at the other table and left the room.

"Farewell mother."

**Chicago, Illinois**

The breeze whipped her hair around and forced her to hold her skirt down.

Several of the other girls stared at her from the tennis courts.

"Look!," exclaimed one girl, as she pointed over at Elise, "She's doing it again!"

"Ha. She's talking to her imaginary friends," said another.

Elise Roberts stood amongst several trees on the edge of the school property, her usual spot during lunch. She enjoyed her time there, it was a small little corner of the world that belonged just to her. Her and her 'imaginary friends.'

Kenneth Dawkins sat on the branch of one of the large oaks looking down at Elise, his ruffled shirt and pants staying still as another large gust of wind entered the area.

"Why don't you just tell them the truth Ellie?"

"What, tell them I'm talking to people they can't see? Or should I tell them I see dead people?"

Elise glared up at Kenneth as he continued to sit on his high perch, a slight yellowish glow emanating from him. She turned as yet another gust of wind began to circle and looked down to the older girl who sat cross-legged in front of her, a violet glow pulsing around her.

"No, Kenny. They'd just think she's crazy. I mean, even we thought she was crazy when she first started talking to us."

"Exactly. They already think I'm weird, telling them I talk to ghosts, especially since when one of them is my sister," Elise agreed, "Besides I don't care to explain myself to those stuck-up girls anyway.

Sasha Roberts got up and moved to stand beside her younger sister. The sisters looked almost identical, the same wavy auburn hair, the same dark brown eyes, even the same build. Their differences were just as evident however. Sasha was semi-transparent and was always surrounded by the violet glow that offset her from her younger sister.

Elise had figured that the glow of her sister, and that of Kenneth, meant something about their personality, or maybe how they had died. Her ideas were not founded though, as she herself admitted, since she had only been in contact with Kenneth and her sister. Without understanding how they were able to communicate with each other, Elise had decided to simply call them 'ghosts,' which had been agreed upon via concensus.

"Fine," responded Kenneth, "But it is no good for young ladies to squabble like this. At least let me have some fun with them?"

Kenneth's yellow glow intensified as he dropped himself from the tree to land just off of the dark green grass. He caught Sasha's eye, then looked to Elise with a sad, yearning look on his face.

Elise closed her eyes. She could feel both her sister and Kenneth staring at her.

Sasha had been four years older than Elise before she had died two years previous in a car crash. Elise had not been the same without her sister. She had become quiet, isolated, and had barely spoken to anyone outside her family. The few friends she had had disappeared when Elise had entered high school. A few months later, while studying for a test, Elise discovered that if she concentrated on certain ideas long enough she could see people who had some connection to her subject of choice. Kenneth had been the first person she had met in this way. The test she had been studying for was for history, primarily the American Revolution. It had been a shock to both Elise and Kenneth when he simply appeared standing next to her as she poured over her textbooks.

Being so removed from everything, Elise had dubbed Kenneth a ghost due to his sudden appearance. The fact that he was dressed like he was from the 1700s and that he had the odd yellow glow about him did little to deter this notion. The two spoke at length, late into the night. The next day Elise realized that Kenneth was gone, but, after concentrating on his visage, he appeared again. The both of them decided to become friends, leaving their age difference, and their living status out of the equation. Weeks passed as the two disovered new things about their relationship. Kenneth found that he could pass through objects, but could, if Elise concentrated on something in particular, could touch or even move it.

It had been Kenneth's idea for Elise to attempt to seek out Sasha. After several failed attempts Elise finally managed the feat after focusing on several pictures of her sister, along with the keepsack necklace she had given Elise for her birthday years before.

Elise opened her eyes, a look of devilish motivation filling them.

"Alright. What did you have in mind Kenny?"

"Oh, you know, a random rush of wind, from the opposite direction. And, if Sasha would care to lend a hand, mayhaps a wee bit of haunting?"

"Fine," Sasha sighed with a brief look of exasperation, "I'll suppose you were going to lift up their skirts with that 'random rush of wind'? What should I do, grab a couple of rackets and toss them into the air and make a 'OoooOOoo' sound?"

"All perfect ideas."

Sasha's eyes narrowed into an appreciative look at the plan. Elise looked at Kenneth and smiled.

"Let's go!"

The two ghosts moved off towards the group of girls who still stood talking and laughing near the tennis courts. It was soon to be Elise's turn to laugh as her sister and friend approached them. Elise began to concentrate on Kenneth and the girls' skirts, while at the same time picturing her sister's face combined with a pair of tennis rackets.

"This is sure to be fun," Elise thought. As she concentrated harder and harder the whites of her eyes turned black, while her irises changed to a bright blue on the right and an emerald green on the left.


	2. Reemergence -2

**X-Men**

**The New Batch**

**Reemergence - 2**

**Crescent Head, Australia**

Clouds drifted across the night sky obscuring the stars and moon. A breeze drifted in off the water and ruffled the dreadlocks of the tall, slim girl who stood admiring the scene in front of her. Waves swept inland towards her as she turned and scanned the beach, a surfboard tucked under her arm.

"Tonight is going to be perfect," she confided to herself out loud, "the surf, the sand and now, now, all I need is a sun."

She once again looked along the length of the beach and planted her board into the sand. The girl then cupped her hands together and concentrated. Her dark brown eyes blazed into light as a similar yellow-ish white light erupted between her palms. Spreading her hands slowly the ball of light grew and grew. When it reached the size she deemed acceptable she dropped one hand and stared at the orb as it floated just above her hand. Tipping her fingers and quickly elevating the light onto one finger she waved her other hand against the side of it and made it spin.

The light in her eyes dimmed until only the light she had balanced on her finger was reflected. She tore her eyes away and focused her gaze on the dark waves. Positioning hereself for a jumpshot she sprang up and launched the glowing orb into the air where it froze in place twenty feet above her head. Her hand swept forward and the orb followed suit until it rested out over the water.

Another moment of concentration involved glowing eyes and a feverish rubbing of hands. Slowly pulling apart her hands and spreading them farther and farther, the ball of light doubled, then quadrupled in size. The light was the size of a golf cart when her eyes dimmed and her hands fell to her sides.

Grabbing her board and positioning it comfortably under her arm, Laura Slater dashed to the water and began to paddle out. The salty breeze and spray felt amazing on her skin. The glow of the orb high above her gave enough light to allow her to surf to her heart's content. Wave after wave crashed into the shore, but not until it had either been dismissed as too small or had given her a ride.

The ball of light had slowly revolved in the air for hours as the girl with the dreadlocks continued to surf. Far from her sight, on a grassy hill above the beach, stood a woman watching the young surfer as the sea breeze ruffled her brown locks and a small purple dragon flitted its wings beside her.

"Guess that's her," Kitty Pryde commented to her companion, "Interesting. Hank may want to introduce her to that kid he went to see."

Kitty smiled to herself as the girl below her rose onto a large wave that carried her to the shore where she leapt off her board into the shallows. The girl snagged her board from the water and drove it into the sand. She raised her hands towards the orb of light and slammed them together. The light instantly blinked out. A new, small, pink light took its place as it brightened the edge of the horizon. The girl grabbed her board and ran out of sight.

"Alright, let's go Lockheed. We'll go and talk to her parents after she leaves for school and see what they want to do. Breakfast first of course."

Kitty turned and made her way back to the car she had rented. Before she could reach it a bright yellow jeep sped towards her, a dark slender form, dreads flying back, sat behind the wheel. The jeep slowed for an instant when its driver noticed the woman and her draconic companion. A look of awe and fear flashed in her eyes as she sped past.

"Breakfast may have to wait."

**Detroit, Michigan**

The first day of school was always terrible, however after the previous night, this day was going to be the worst yet.

Lucy stepped out of her little red Volkswagon bug and immediately put a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun. Her sunglasses hadn't seemed to do themselves justice for the last few weeks. She mussed her bangs so that they gave her some additional protection from the glare.

After slinging her backpack on she turned and caught the first glance. She forced herself to ignore it and proceeded towards the school entrance. Her long black hair hung down her back and concealed the sides of her face, a fact she greatly enjoyed as it meant she didn't have to see all the other looks people were sure to be giving her as she walked across the parking lot.

"Hey freak! Nice Pippy Longstockings!," a girl shouted from a huddled group of seniors.

"Yeah, you should have worn them with that push-up shirt you wore last night!," a guy from another group agreed.

"The only good part of an emo girl is her boobs," chimed in yet another person, a moment before he was punched by the girl he was walking with.

"Corset, it's called a corset," Lucy fumed to herself as she entered the school.

Her locker from last year was on the opposite side of the school, a problem she deemed quite necessary to change as soon as possible. Until then she had to pass by the vast majority of othe students.

The awkward looks, inappropriate shout-outs and cat calls followed her all the way to the south wing of the school. When she made it through to the hall where her locker was located only a few other people were there. Since there were only fifteen lockers, and most of them belonged to seniors the hallway was usually quite deserted which was why Lucy had decided to situate herself there in the first place. The lack of thru traffic also meant that those people who may be there would not know her and, more importantly were not at the party the night before.

Lucy's eyes widened and flared with anger as she approached her locker. A poster of a recent vampire romance movie had been taped to the door. The original poster had the unsmiling human girl protagonist and her vampire love interest holding hands, with a secondary character standing behind them forming the love-triangle from the series. This poster had been altered. A picture of her had been photoshoped into the scene in place of the female character, a trickle of what was clearly supposed to be blood coming from her mouth. The face of the vampire had been replaced with a picture of Kinnsey Clarke.

A grimace of hatred and regret spread across her face. Her mind raged at how stupid she had been last night and at how her actions were now going to ruin what little happiness she had at school.

Lucy had always been a little unusual. She liked dark clothing, especially since it matched her hair. Heavy metal and dark techno had been her favourite music since she could remember. The blood red electric guitar that stood in her room had extended that enjoyment. She adored gothic architecture that other people thought was creepy because it was different. None of these traits had ever brought her many friends, but that had been okay because of the one friend she had always been able to count on, her grandfather.

Abraham Jansen had lived with Lucy all her life and had become her legal guardian after her parents died in a car collision when she was seven. A stern man to the outside world, Lucy knew him for his jovial demeanor that he seemed to only share with her. He had the unusual talent to make her smile, an action she rarely did outside his company. Abe, as she called him, had always supported his granddaughter in her love of gothic influences, even going so far as taking her to Europe for her middle school graduation. It had been his idea for Lucy to go to the party.

"In all his years, Abe has never made such a mistake," she thought as she glared vacantly at the poster, "No. I can't blame him, it was my choice."

Lucy's mind drifted to the previous night as her eyes tried to pull themselves away from the picture in front of them.

It had taken two of the three weeks of the party being mentioned for Abe to convince Lucy to go

"- to have fun before school starts, and to be out with people your own age," that had been the reasoning given to her by her grandfather.

She had bought a new corset and high-top boots, spent a week altering an old dress by adding several frills and lacework and had even attempted to fix her hair into tails. She suspended her usual amount of eyeliner and eyeshadow and instead had applied a light pink touching of lip gloss. After all of her work Abe decided that he would drop her off at the party which was being held at one of the senior's houses.

"You look gorgeous Lucy, simply gorgeous. Beautiful even," he added seeing the shy look in her eye she knew had appeared, "Before you go, I'd like you to have these. I've noticed you looking at them and thought they would go well with your outfit.

Abe had handed over a pair of black and red striped elbow-length finger-less silk gloves. He was right, she had been looking at those gloves for months, everytime she had gone to the mall and, they matched her dress and corset perfectly.

Lucy hadn't known what to say and she told him so, his reaction was to tell her to have fun. She had slipped on the gloves and hugged him before she had got out of the car.

*Her time with her grandfather was the best part of the evening, she had decided hours later as she ran home from the party.*

To her shame she remembered the several coolers and mixed drinks she had tried, something she would never have done except that she was too excited about her wardrobe choices, her new gloves and the prospect of maybe making friends, not to mention the fact that Kinnsey Clarke was there.

Lucy scowled at the poster on her locker as her mind wandered past the amount of alcohol she had consumed and focused on what she could remember herself doing after. Energetic club music had been playing, nothing she would normally have listened to on her own, but it had felt good to dance after finishing what must have been her seventh or eighth drink. The beat pounded in her head and her arms stretched to their height as she swayed amongst the crowd. Strumming her fingers to the sound, she had opened her eyes and watched the strobe lights reflect off of the giant disco ball. Returning her gaze to the crowd she realized that Kinnsey was dancing next to her, then to her disbelief as a new song started, that she was dancing with her.

Kinnsey had been wearing a low-cut white top, a green overshirt she had left open and skinney jean shorts. Lucy fixated on her auburn hair as she danced, her arms, her hips, her lips. It had been her infatuation with Kinnsey that had allowed Lucy to realize that she preferred the fairer sex. She had been cautious about showing any form of affection towards her as to not alienate herself any more than she was, but that night she couldn't restrain herself any longer.

Lucy's heart swelled as Kinnsey ran her hands over Lucy's shoulders then held them there. The sound of her blood rushing almost drowned out the music as Kinnsey pulled her ever closer, and whispered in her ear that she adored her outfit and gloves. The two danced for what seemed to Lucy an eternity, one that she didn't want to end. Kinnsey was like water, shifting, changing.

She blamed it on the booze, but knew that it had been her choice. As another song came to an end and Kinnsey had once again put her arms on her shoulders, Lucy acted. She had taken her shot and kissed her. Her lips had been indescribably soft. Just like the first song, the kiss seemed to drag on forever, but also last no time at all.

"What the hell are you doing!," Kinnsey had shrieked after she had wrenched away from Lucy. "Are you some kind of lesbo?! You are aren't you?!"

That one declaration and the night seemed to crash down around her. Lucy staggered back as several people in the room turned their focus on the two girls. Shouts of derision mixed with encouragement exploded around her.

"Aww yeah ladies, keep going!"

"Jansen's gay!"

"The emo chick is queer - I knew it!"

"Watch it Kinnsey, the vamp might want to suck on your neck next!"

Lucy couldn't recall any of the other things people had verbally thrown in her direction as she came back from the dark recesses of her mind. She found herself still staring at the poster on her locker.

"What do you think of Harker's poster? I find it a tad too forward for my tastes."

Lucy tore her eyes away from the poster and spun, coming face to face with Arthur Conrad.

She had known Arthur since middle school. A relative outcast like herself, Arthur was mostly avoided by his peers due to his antisocial behaviour. It wasn't that people had never attempted to be his friend, but they never lastedfor very long due to his Machiavellian attitude.

"I assume you were at the party last night?," Lucy questioned.

"Of course, though I would most likely have heard about your little incident by now if I hadn't. Your flirtation with Clarke is well known throughout the school."

Lucy took a large gulp of air at this news. She had figured as much, but Arthur's confirmation still hit her hard. Her anger swelled and she clenched her fists. Arthur's dark blue eyes narrowed, in what appeared to be a look of appreciation as he looked from her hands to her face.

"I can understand how you feel Lucy, being rejected like that, in front of so many people," his callous voice echoed in her ears, "Sometimes when my mind dwells on these - circumstances - I just want to let loose. Isn't that right John?"

Her eyes widened in surprise as John Harker walked around the corner towards her, a derisive smile etched across his face. The anger she was feeling flared almost to breaking point. Lucy looked from Harker to Arthur and saw anticipation and an odd hunger in his eyes.

Harker's smile widened as he came closer.

"Do you like my artwork Jansen?," his voice dripped condescension, "I worked really hard on it. Took me a couple hours after the party. My favourite part is the blood."

He stopped walking when he was no more than a few inches in front of her. From over his shoulder Lucy could just make out Arthur, a similar smile to Harker's hung on his face. His loose posture from moments before had changed to one of looming eagerness. His dark brown hair hung over his brow, darkening his countenance. The hunger in his eyes had also intensified, making them seem dark, empty and cold.

"So what of it Jansen, you going to take another shot at Kinnsey? Going to picture her naked in that little lez head of yours? Maybe sneak into her room at night and use your tongue? Oh, no wait, you'd rather use your teeth right? You're going to vamp-out and suck her blood right? Yeah that's it! Where do you want to bite her Jansen, the neck or between her legs?"

Lucy couldn't take anymore. Her rage erupted. Before she could even think about it she grabbed Harker by the front of his shirt and lifted him off his feet. His face went white with surprise. The fear he exuded just made what she was doing feel right.

A loud crunch followed Harker as Lucy slammed him into her locker, lodging him into the door and leaving a severe dent in the metal framework. The mirror that hung on the inside of the locker exploded at the force. Pieces of it dropped through the now gapping opening that was once the bottom of the door and onto the floor of the hallway.

Lucy turned to Arthur, the look of eager hunger had been replaced by terror.

"Your eyes!," was all he said as he rushed down the hall and around the corner out of sight.

Lucy looked back at Harker, wedged into the bent and twisted remnants of her locker. He was unconcious. Breathing heavily she looked down at the pieces of her mirror. What stared back at her sent a shiver down her spine and a cold sweat to break out.

In the mirror her visage looked up at her with blood-red eyes and two long fangs protruding from her upper jaw.

The morning bell was drowned out by the scream that erupted from the girl who had become the very thing that she had always denied.

**Seattle, Washington**

Her hair had always been cut short around her ears, but kept long enough to fall just below her shoulders at the back. Today, however, she had her hair up in a small tail, allowing a rare glimpse of her neck. The tawny colour of her eyes matched her hair. Slightly taller than him, Alexandra Masters was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Quiet and shy, she could be fiercely headstrong one minute and then cool and funny the next.

The droning of the teacher on the first day of school would normally have irritated him, but not today. This was his first day of high school and he was seated only a few desks away from the girl of his dreams. He made a point to show he was paying attention as the teacher stood at the front of the room and blandly went over how the room they were in would serve as their homeroom and that they would move from class to class throughout the day to attend different subjects. His head faced forward, but his eyes and mind were directed strictly to his left.

Her attention was fixed, though he could tell by the way that her shoulders were held that she was also not paying attention. Every so often he saw a glimmer of muted yellow as her eyes made their way around the room. Yellow-brown eyes like hers were rare, but it wasn't their rarity that drew him to them. It was how they lit up when she noticed him enter a room. Coupled with the small smile that usually flashed across her face, he would have said that the combination made his knees weak, if, he wasn't preoccupied with the swell in his chest whenever it happened.

Midday came after what seemed like ages. Most of the class rushed to the door, eager to stretch their legs and end the day. As it was the first day, the freshman were given the afternoon off. Though they were supposed to use this time to find their way around the school and seek out the several other rooms they would be attending classes in, it was evident that none of his fellow classmates had any intention of doing so.

Not to be left behind he quickly grabbed the three books the teacher had handed out to them and craddled them under his arm.

"You want to come for lunch with us?," came a voice to his left.

It was Miranda Zabatino who had asked the question. Another girl he had known from middle school, Miranda had become a close friend over the summer, and was someone who was counted amongst Alexandra's few school friends.

"Archie! Do you want to come?," Miranda asked again.

Miranda's deep blue eyes glanced from him to Alexandra and back while her left eyebrow raised in an all-knowing fashion.

"Yeah, alright. Sounds good," he agreed as he made his way over to the two girls, "Hey Allie."

Her eyes lit up as he approached and made him subconciously speed up his gait for a few steps.

"Hey, Archie," a weak, but very warm smile sprang to her lips, "Isn't high school going to be fun?"

"Oh yeah, Mr. I-talk-so-much-about-nothing is going to be great for a homeroom teacher."

Archie nervously scratched the arm holding his books as he tried to not stare at Allie.

"Cool. Steve, Jim and Lisa said they wanted to come too. They'll meet us outside after we all drop our stuff off at our lockers," explained Miranda.

"Where are we headed!?," Steve shouted back at the rest of the group.

"Mickey's, dumbass!," Jim reminded him.

Archie walked beside Miranda, her dark ponytail swaying back and forth as she walked. The weather was warm for September, and what Allie had chosen to wear had been on his mind all morning. He hadn't seen her since school had ended for the summer, and the last thing he'd known about her was that she had started dating some guy from another school who she lived close to. This relationship hadn't lasted long, a tidbit of information provided to him by Miranda.

"So, what do you think of Allie's shirt?," pried Miranda.

"It's rather-"

"Maybe I should just ask you what you think of her boobs?"

Archie turned to her with a look that he knew included guilt.

"I'm a girl and I noticed. They're nice. I saw you check 'em out when you came over in class."

Miranda paused as Archie's face darkened and he looked down at his feet.

"It's natural Dude. She's hot. And like I said, that other guy is history. Besides, she looked pretty happy you were coming for lunch."

That brought a smile to his face for an instant before it faded.

"The smile was nice, but I don't know Mirry. I've liked her for a while now-"

"And you hung out pretty much all last year," she finished his sentence for him.

Ahead of them Jim and Steve were arguing about a baseball match they had seen on television the previous night. Their voices drowned out whatever Allie and Lisa were saying. Archie found his eyes drawn to the back of Allie's neck. Her bare arms swung at her sides and her long legs kept pace to Lisa. Archie realized this was only the second time he'd ever seen her wearing shorts.

"Apart from all that though," Archie responded, shaking his head to remove the impression of Allie's legs from his mind, "I think about her a lot. I just don't know if it would work out, if she even did like me."

"Can't know that unless you ask Dude."

"I did, remember?," he shot back, scratching his arm again.

"'People change their minds all the time,' her words."

Archie smiled at his friend. Miranda always tried to cheer him up, no matter what. It was likely the main reason why he like hanging out with her so much. Though, the female insight never hurt. The two friends continued to walk behind the other four as Archie once again let himself stare at Allie. He watched her ponytail bounce and pictured a scene in which he held her in his arms. Miranda smiled to herself when she saw the dreamy look on his face.

Seeing Archie Zinc that day had been more than nice. She had enjoyed having lunch with him, though she had played it off as being with Lisa and Miranda. As happy to see him as she had been, she had questioned herself all day about liking him.

"It's not like there's anything wrong with him," she explained to herself as she pulled the covers of her bed back, "He's a good guy. Even though he can be distant, he can also be really funny, thoughtful and just playing games is fun with him."

Allie flopped onto her bed and burried her face in her pillow. Her thoughts of the fun times she'd had previously with Archie turned dark as she remembered her ex and fell into a troubled sleep.

Her dreams over the past few weeks had been plagued with visions of Jason Ralph. She had met him two months before the end of junior high and they had started dating within weeks. It had been a good relationship, she had thought. He was a junior in high school and liked a lot of the same things she did. They had gone to movies, hung out at his place and talked about anything and everything. Things had been going great until roughly the middle of summer when it all turned bad.

She had stayed over at his place that night, unknowing that his parents weren't coming home. When the two of them had started to get ready for bed, he had left the room as always to let her change. As she had been pulling on her pajama pants he had reentered the room. What happened next was still a haze of fear, shifting colours and yelling. She had been thrown onto his bed, her pants ripped down. One of his hands had found her breasts. He had tried to rape her that night. She still couldn't remember how she had gotten away, but as much as she reminded herself that he was now detained, her dreams had turned to nightmares.

The dream she had now returned her to that night. In her mind she saw herself on his bed, his clouded form atop her. She watched his hand pull at her pants while the other forced itself under her shirt. The Allie that was watching cringed as the one under her attacker did the same. The two versions of her merged and she found herself held down by Jason. His face came into focus and then blurred. She could feel his hand on her breast, squeezing. His other hand found its way between her legs. She screamed as his face blurred again. Turning away she saw that she and her attacker, as well as the bed he had her pinned on, were no longer in his room, but were outside. A fog-shrouded forest had appeared around her. A growl pulled her attention away from the blurred figure on top of her. A wildcat stood perched on a fallen tree, its eyes fiercely staring at Jason. Another loud howl escaped the cat. Looking back at the blurred face above her the sound came again, but this time from her own mouth. A scream erupted from him as his face was split open by the claws that now existed on her hand. A second swipe ripped his torso into bloody shreds. Allie was now the dominate. She lept upon her prey and tore at him, shredding him for what he had tried to do to her.

Allie sat bolt upright in her bed, wide awake. The tawny fur of the wildcat now blanketed her arms and legs. The strength and unbridled fury of the animal inside her had taken hold of her, she had become one with it. As her fear of her dream and recollection of that night meshed with the horror of what she had become washed over her, she could feel a small part of her that was happy with the transformation. This part of her soon overtook the fear. This part of her wanted to see Archie.

The Zinc residence was quiet. Archie sat at his desk, flipping through pictures and word documents on his laptop. Now and then he opened a web browser and checked to see if anyone was online on several social media sites - only Miranda was, and she hadn't answered the message he'd sent her four hours previous. Seeing Allie's picture on the side of the most popular site he quickly closed the window with a grimace.

"Grrah!," came an irritated prenouncement of seeing the picture, "Why can't I get her out of my head? And! Why is my arm so goddamn itchy?"

He vigourously scratched his left arm before returning his focus to the screen in front of him. His arm had been bothering him for days now, but he could never see anything wrong with it. A number of webistes he's looked up hadn't helped him in a self-diagnosis either. To make matters worse, he had noticed that his back and the right side of his neck were starting to become itchy as well.

A loud ping alerted him that he had received a new message. Tabbing over to the correct window he let out a sigh of exasperation when he saw that the message was from Jim asking where their geography class would be the next day.

Archie leaned back in his chair and stretched. The clock on his computer told him it was almost 1AM. Sleep was something that did not intice him, he felt wide awake.

"Time for a slice I think," he told himself as he left his room and made his way to the kitchen.

As quietly as he could, Archie grabbed a plate and a slice of the pizza his family had had for dinner. Before he placed them in the microwave he stopped. Catching sight of his reflection in the moonlight bouncing off of the stainless-steel fridge, he stepped up to it for a closer look.

"I must be more tired than I thought," he reassured himself.

He looked again. The odd lighting made it look as though his skin was the same colour as the fridge.

"That can't be - I mean - we're related, but I didn't think..."

He almost dropped his plate when another message ping echoed down the hallway. Tearing away from the fridge Archie dashed back to his room. The message was from Miranda.

"Final...?"

He read the message.

"Archie. It's Allie. We're at your house. Help!"

Archie dropped his unheated food onto his desk and rushed to the front door and flung it open.

Miranda stood on the front step, a look of worry mixed with fear on her face. Allie stood beside her.

Allie was dressed only in shorts and a t-shirt. Tawny hair covered her arms, legs and face. Her legs bent back at the knees and Archie could just make out what could only be a tail swishing behind her.

"Archie...," whispered Miranda, "What? What happened to you?"

"To me?," he turned back into his house, shock crippling him from doing anything else, "But Allie is a, a - Ahhhrghgh!"

His skin was shiny and silver, and when he had yelled his tongue had also been silver. His eyes lacked pupils and irises. The only thing that had not changed was his mess of red hair.


End file.
